The Theory of Knowledge—a core element of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme—is a course in epistemology and practical philosophy. By examining short texts (including but not limited to local and world issues, philosophy, history and its perspectives, and scientific research) and the knowledge issues they contain and inspire, you will gain the skills necessary to analyze knowledge claims, their underlying assumptions, and their implications.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Let us begin with the assumption that we respect and value one another despite (and indeed because of) our differences. What if one or more of those differences disappeared? And what if that disappearance was the result of a conceptual change rather than a change in those that we see as different? Before you return, refreshed and reinvigorated by break, please read this article and post a comment reflecting on the ideas therein and on your own responses. Does this information change the way you view race? What is the relationship between genetic makeup and views on race? Between facts and their implications and our assessment of objectivity (our own and others')?
Please complete your first post by the morning of Monday 26 March. By 8am on the following Monday (2 April, our next class day), please respond to one another's comments and compose a Knowledge Question that applies to the article. Thanks and have a wonderful March. Oh, and if you find yourself running low on awesome spend a little time here.